U.S. Retains Tight Control on Haiti Post
U.S. troops maintained tight control of the Haitian army headquarters Tuesday, one day after a group of Haitian ex-soldiers stormed the building in a protest over back pay and military cuts.
Four former soldiers were killed and at least six were injured Monday in the most dramatic clash since U.S. troops arrived in September to usher in the return of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
U.S. troops and loyalist Haitian soldiers fired at the dissidents, “but it is not clear if any of the casualties were caused by U.S. or by Haitian forces,” U.S. Embassy spokesman Stanley Schrager said.
Aristide’s government has slashed the size of the army from about 7,000 to 1,500. The pay dispute has been brewing since last week, when the army command said only 1,500 soldiers would get their December pay.
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